The role of weights in rehab

etexley · 07-04-2003, 07:35 PM

For a long time I have thought that weights were of little or no use in rehabilitating a spinal injury. But I'm learning not only from therapists, but also from personal experience that weight training may play a very beneficial role in helping my body to use redundant and healing nerve pathways.

I am an ASIA A T5 paraplegic (or was.) What I am finding is that free body lifting with my upper body using dumbells requires me to try with everything I have to use my paraspinals and abdominals to keep myself stable.

Take a bicep arm curl using a dumbell. Clearly, I have to lift signicantly less than I would if I were to isolate my trunk and arm to perform this exercise using a machine. But my goal is NOT to make my arms bigger. My goals is coax my body to learn to recruit below my level of injury.

I think that isolation using machines is exactly the wrong approach to the problem. My problem is that the distance between the strength of my arms and the stabelizing muscles of my trunk is immense. Isolation would only serve to make this gap even larger. (it has been alluded to on this forum that people with spinal injuries should NOT strengthen their upper bodies using weights....I think it needs to be done in a very specific way.)

But starting out with minimal weights and working with everything I have DOES fatigue my supposedly unusable back muscles. How do I know if I can't feel them? Because when I begin I have balance...and when I finished I have none. They are fatigued.

I also think that the psychological motivator which one gains from weights is extermely beneficial...personally, I believe that the proper mind state alters one's biology. but I have no direct evidence of this. (although I know that work at UAB is being done in Dr. Peduzzi's lab on the proper psychological environment for rehabiliating rats, showing that "rich environment" (meaning varing kinds of therapies) together with biological produces results. Neither alone does anything.

I personally believe that a weight training regimen will play an essential role in the rehabilitation of muscles which are reinnervated either through natural healing, or at the time that a biological therapy is available. And I can think of no better routines in my life, than to learn to try and do those routines now, before I take any sort of surgery or drugs.

Andrew K Fletcher · 07-05-2003, 01:43 AM

Hi Eric

There is a video in the UK that I copied from the TV. It was ab out A Russian Strongman, who fell from a trapeze smashing his spine.

Dikul adopted your approach and with nothing but sheer determination and an incredible amount of effort and dedication, he not only walked but became possibly the strongest man in the World.

He now runs a rehab centre in Russia using his exercise programme, which can be found on the web.

I believe also that free weights coupled with a slanted exercise bench as demonstrated by Dikul will undoubtedly bring about benefits for those that can do exercise.

I also believe that the repetition approach using lighter weights to generate heat and stimulate circulation.

Andrew

"Go With The Flow"

Snowman · 07-05-2003, 11:13 AM

Eric

Congratulations on figuring this out on your own.

Using free weights is the fastest and best way to retrain the neromuscular system. Free weights cause instability whereas machines were developed to create stability. The instability of free weights forces more nervous pathways and muscle fibers to be recruited thereby increasing the amount of work done for a particular exercise.

Here is a simple exercise to work your core musculature (hips, low back, abdominals):

Site forward in your chair so your back is not against the backrest.

Attempt to roll your pelvis forward, grab onto your legs and pull your pelvis if you have to. Let go of your legs and try to hold it there. If you can do this go on to the next step. If not, keep at it until you can.

Once in an anterior tilt, lift your hands off your legs and slowly raise them as high as possible with the goal of raising them over your head.

This will cause the erector spinae and abdominal musculature to kick in (if there are connections) in order to stabilize your torso.

Eric Harness,CSCS
Project Walk™

etexley · 07-05-2003, 05:03 PM

Eric,

Thankyou for your input.

Something else that I've noticed is my tendency to compensate with my head and neck for achieving positions which without the injury I would have accomplished with my trunk. If I don't overcome these tendencies, my recruitment will do me little or no good because my muscles will never get stronger.

Another very good exercise is as follows...as you say, roll the pelvis forward and hold it there. Im not at the point yet where I can bring my arms out directly in front. But what I am trying to do...is to take me arms and raise the SLOWLY directly above my head like Im going to dive. While I do this I try HARD to relax my trapezius.

I try to do this without falling over. My record for this exercise is about 25 times. When I reach 1000, then I'm making progress.

07-04-2003, 07:35 PM	#1
etexley Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Boca Raton, Florida, USA Posts: 1,446	The role of weights in rehab For a long time I have thought that weights were of little or no use in rehabilitating a spinal injury. But I'm learning not only from therapists, but also from personal experience that weight training may play a very beneficial role in helping my body to use redundant and healing nerve pathways. I am an ASIA A T5 paraplegic (or was.) What I am finding is that free body lifting with my upper body using dumbells requires me to try with everything I have to use my paraspinals and abdominals to keep myself stable. Take a bicep arm curl using a dumbell. Clearly, I have to lift signicantly less than I would if I were to isolate my trunk and arm to perform this exercise using a machine. But my goal is NOT to make my arms bigger. My goals is coax my body to learn to recruit below my level of injury. I think that isolation using machines is exactly the wrong approach to the problem. My problem is that the distance between the strength of my arms and the stabelizing muscles of my trunk is immense. Isolation would only serve to make this gap even larger. (it has been alluded to on this forum that people with spinal injuries should NOT strengthen their upper bodies using weights....I think it needs to be done in a very specific way.) But starting out with minimal weights and working with everything I have DOES fatigue my supposedly unusable back muscles. How do I know if I can't feel them? Because when I begin I have balance...and when I finished I have none. They are fatigued. I also think that the psychological motivator which one gains from weights is extermely beneficial...personally, I believe that the proper mind state alters one's biology. but I have no direct evidence of this. (although I know that work at UAB is being done in Dr. Peduzzi's lab on the proper psychological environment for rehabiliating rats, showing that "rich environment" (meaning varing kinds of therapies) together with biological produces results. Neither alone does anything. I personally believe that a weight training regimen will play an essential role in the rehabilitation of muscles which are reinnervated either through natural healing, or at the time that a biological therapy is available. And I can think of no better routines in my life, than to learn to try and do those routines now, before I take any sort of surgery or drugs.

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

07-05-2003, 01:43 AM	#2
Andrew K Fletcher Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 436	Hi Eric There is a video in the UK that I copied from the TV. It was ab out A Russian Strongman, who fell from a trapeze smashing his spine. Dikul adopted your approach and with nothing but sheer determination and an incredible amount of effort and dedication, he not only walked but became possibly the strongest man in the World. He now runs a rehab centre in Russia using his exercise programme, which can be found on the web. I believe also that free weights coupled with a slanted exercise bench as demonstrated by Dikul will undoubtedly bring about benefits for those that can do exercise. I also believe that the repetition approach using lighter weights to generate heat and stimulate circulation. Andrew "Go With The Flow"

07-05-2003, 11:13 AM	#3
Snowman Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Carlsbad, Ca USA Posts: 928	Eric Congratulations on figuring this out on your own. Using free weights is the fastest and best way to retrain the neromuscular system. Free weights cause instability whereas machines were developed to create stability. The instability of free weights forces more nervous pathways and muscle fibers to be recruited thereby increasing the amount of work done for a particular exercise. Here is a simple exercise to work your core musculature (hips, low back, abdominals): Site forward in your chair so your back is not against the backrest. Attempt to roll your pelvis forward, grab onto your legs and pull your pelvis if you have to. Let go of your legs and try to hold it there. If you can do this go on to the next step. If not, keep at it until you can. Once in an anterior tilt, lift your hands off your legs and slowly raise them as high as possible with the goal of raising them over your head. This will cause the erector spinae and abdominal musculature to kick in (if there are connections) in order to stabilize your torso. Eric Harness,CSCS Project Walk™

07-05-2003, 05:03 PM	#4
etexley Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Boca Raton, Florida, USA Posts: 1,446	Eric, Thankyou for your input. Something else that I've noticed is my tendency to compensate with my head and neck for achieving positions which without the injury I would have accomplished with my trunk. If I don't overcome these tendencies, my recruitment will do me little or no good because my muscles will never get stronger. Another very good exercise is as follows...as you say, roll the pelvis forward and hold it there. Im not at the point yet where I can bring my arms out directly in front. But what I am trying to do...is to take me arms and raise the SLOWLY directly above my head like Im going to dive. While I do this I try HARD to relax my trapezius. I try to do this without falling over. My record for this exercise is about 25 times. When I reach 1000, then I'm making progress.